Data processing apparatus connectable to a LAN

ABSTRACT

A data processing apparatus, such as a facsimile apparatus, connected to a LAN, that transmits and/or receives data to or from another apparatus, wherein even if an error or failure such as a printer error or an insufficiency of available space in image memory for storing image data occurs, the required process is continued by transferring the image data from the data processing apparatus to another apparatus also connected to the LAN. The data processing apparatus has the capability of detecting an error in the LAN when the apparatus is connected to the LAN. This allows the data processing apparatus to operate correctly without problems that might otherwise occur due to the error in the LAN. The data processing apparatus also has the capability of operating in an adequate process mode corresponding to a process command contained in a received packet. This allows effective use of the data processing apparatus.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The present invention relates to a data processing apparatus suchas a facsimile apparatus having the capability of data communication.More particularly, the present invention relates to a data processingapparatus connectable to another apparatus via a LAN (local areanetwork).

[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art

[0004] Some conventional data processing apparatuses such as a facsimileapparatus have the capability of sending an error message to an anotherapparatus when an error such as a printer error, insufficiency of freememory area of image data memory for storing image data, etc., occurs inthe facsimile apparatus. However, a facsimile apparatus of this typesuffers from the problem that the receiving operation stops until theapparatus recovers from the error.

[0005] Furthermore, in a conventional facsimile apparatus, when theapparatus receives a large amount of data during image datacommunication, since the decoding rate is slow compared to the linetransmission rate, the receiving memory often becomes busy, and action(such as sending an RNR signal) is taken according to a protocolprocedure. As a result, the total communication time becomes longer, andin some cases, the communication is terminated before completion. On theother hand, when the facsimile apparatus transmits a large amount ofimage data, since the reading rate of its scanner is higher than thetransmission rate, memory for storing transmission data often becomesbusy, and thus the machine must take action such as stopping the scanneroperation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0006] In view of the above, it is an object of the present invention toprovide a data processing apparatus having the capability of acceptingdata transmitted by another apparatus even when an error occurs in thedata processing apparatus.

[0007] It is another object of the present invention to provide a dataprocessing apparatus that can continue the transmission/reception ofimage data and the data storing operation without prolonging thecommunication time even when memory for storing image data is busy.

[0008] It is still another object of the present invention to provide adata processing apparatus having the capability of detecting an error ina LAN when connected to the LAN.

[0009] It is another object of the present invention to provide a dataprocessing apparatus having the capability of transferring image data toanother data processing apparatus connected to a LAN depending on thestatus of the data processing apparatus connected to the LAN.

[0010] It is further object of the present invention to provide a dataprocessing apparatus having the capability of receiving image data fromanother apparatus connected to a LAN.

[0011] It is another object of the present invention to provide a dataprocessing apparatus that can be controlled by another apparatusconnected to a LAN.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] The above and other objects of the invention will become moreapparent from the subsequent detailed description with reference to theaccompanying drawings in which:

[0013]FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a facsimile apparatusaccording to an embodiment of the present invention wherein thefacsimile apparatus is connected to a LAN;

[0014]FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of afacsimile apparatus according to an embodiment of the present inventionwherein only major elements are shown;

[0015] FIGS. 3-5 are flow charts illustrating operation flows of afacsimile apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0016]FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating a memory areaconfiguration for explanation of a memory managing method in a facsimileapparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0017] FIGS. 7-15 are flow charts illustrating operation flows of afacsimile apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0018]FIG. 16 is a schematic diagram illustrating stored-page managementinformation managed in a facsimile apparatus according to an embodimentof the present invention;

[0019]FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram illustrating a table used formanaging stored-page management information remaining unused in afacsimile apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0020]FIGS. 18 and 19 are flow charts illustrating operation flows of afacsimile apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0021]FIG. 20 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of theconfiguration of an alarm mechanism in a facsimile apparatus accordingto an embodiment of the present invention, wherein the alarm mechanismis used to notify a user of LAN conditions;

[0022]FIG. 21 is a time chart illustrating an example of automaticsetting of operation modes in a facsimile apparatus according to anembodiment of the present invention;

[0023]FIGS. 22 and 23 are flow charts illustrating operation flows of afacsimile apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;and

[0024]FIG. 24 is a schematic diagram illustrating the organization of IPaddresses used in a TCP/IP protocol.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS First Embodiment

[0025]FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a system constructionto which a facsimile apparatus according to an embodiment of the presentinvention is applied.

[0026] The facsimile apparatus 101 according to the present embodimenthas the capability of being connected directly to a LAN 100 (a facsimileapparatus of this type will be referred to a LAN-FAX hereinafter).

[0027] Reference numeral 102 denotes a communication line such as anISDN (integrated service digital network), a PSTN (public-switchedtelephone network), etc., that is connected to the LAN-FAX 101.

[0028] Reference numeral 103 denotes a server machine or a computer forcontrolling the LAN 100, wherein the server machine 103 acts as a fileserver for managing files on the LAN 100. Reference numerals 104 denoteclient machines (information processing terminals) connected to the LAN100. Reference numeral 105 denotes a printer server that accepts printrequests from client machines 104 and outputs print data to printers106. Each printing apparatus 106 connected to the printer server 105outputs print image data in a visual form. If an address is designated,a corresponding printing apparatus is selected from the plurality ofprinting apparatuses 106 connected to the printer server 105, and thusit is possible to perform a printing operation using a desired printingapparatus. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the configuration ofthe LAN-FAX 101 according to the present embodiment, wherein only majorelements are shown. The LAN-FAX 101 performs various processingassociated with facsimile communication using a CPU 201 and itsperipheral elements. The CPU 201 is connected to ROM 202, RAM 203, imagedata memory 204, a resolution conversion processing unit 205, acommunication codec 206, a read/record codec 207, a modem 208, an NCU209, an image processor 210, a scanner 211, an operation panel 212, aline buffer 213, a LAN interface 214, a printer 215, a printer formatter216, and an external display 217. The CPU 201 acts as a systemcontroller responsible for the control of the whole of LAN-FAX 101.

[0029] Various control programs are preset in the ROM 202 so that theCPU 201 performs various processing described later according to thesecontrol programs. The RAM 203 is constructed with for example static RAM(SRAM). The RAM 203 is used as work memory for storing program controlvariables. The RAM 203 also stores other various data including varioussetting values registered by an operator via the operation panel 212 anddata associated with device management. The image data memory 204 isused to store image data, and comprises recording media such as dynamicRAM (DRAM), a hard disk, floppy disk, etc.

[0030] The resolution conversion processing unit 205 performs resolutionconversion, for example mm-inch conversion, on raster data. Thecommunication codec (coding and decoding processing unit forcommunication) 206 performs coding and decoding on image data forcommunication. The read/record codec (coding and decoding processingunit for read and record operations) 207 performs read/recordoperations. The modem 208 modulates and demodulates facsimiletransmission and reception signals. The NCU 209 performs line controlsuch as automatic calling and answering control in which selectionsignals (dial pulse or tone dialer) are automatically sent over thecommunication line 102 and calling tones are automatically detected.

[0031] The scanner 211 comprises a CS image sensor,original-document-sheet transfer mechanism, and other elements known tothose in the art. The scanner 211 optically reads the informationassociated with an original document or printed material and converts itinto electric image data. The image processor 210 performs variouscorrection processing on the image data read by the scanner 211 andoutputs resultant high-quality image data. The operation panel 212 has akeyboard through which an operator inputs various information.

[0032] The line buffer 213 stores image data temporarily line by lineduring transfer of the image data. The LAN interface 214 serves as aninterface for the connection to the LAN 100. In this embodiment, the LAN100 is preferably a network based on a protocol in accordance with theTCP (Transmission Control Protocol)/IP (Internet Protocol). The LANinterface 214 is also based on the protocol in accordance with theTCP/IP.

[0033] The printer 215 is a laser beam printer (LBP) for recording thereceived image data or file data on recording paper. When file datareceived from a client machine 104 is printed, the printer formatter 216analyzes the printer description language and converts the file data toimage data according to the analysis result.

[0034] If an error occurs in the LAN 100, the external display 217 givesa user warning of the error by displaying a warning message or bycausing the display to blink.

[0035] A selector 218 analyzes a process command received from a clientmachine 104 connected to the LAN 100, and sets the operation mode of theLAN-FAX 101 to a communication mode, recording mode, or reading modeaccording to the analysis result.

[0036] Referring to the flow charts shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, thereceiving operation of the LAN-FAX 101 will be described below.

[0037] First, sender information, that has been received from a sendingstation and stored in an NSF (non-standard function) frame, is analyzedand set as a sending user name (step S301). The sender informationstored in the NSF frame represents the user name (log-in name) of thedestination user and is stored as the destination name in the form ofASCII codes. More specifically, the sender information is stored in theRAM 203.

[0038] Then, the status of the printer 215 of the LAN-FAX 101 isanalyzed. In this embodiment, the possible statuses of the printer 215include NORMAL status, in which the printer 215 is available, BUSYstatus, in which the printer 215 is being used in another task, andERROR status, which means that an error has occurred in the printer 215.

[0039] Then, it is determined whether the status of the printer 215 isERROR status or not (step S302). If the status is not ERROR status, thenwhether it is BUSY is determined (step S303). If the status is BUSY,then the status of the image data memory 204 in the LAN-FAX 101 ischecked (step S304) so as to determine whether an error has occurred inthe image data memory 204 judging from the remaining room in the imagedata memory 204 or from other parameters.

[0040] If no errors occur in the image data memory 204, then the processskips the steps associated with the transferring of image data stored inthe image data memory 204, and proceeds to step S308, in which imagedata is received and stored in the image data memory 204, that is, amemory receiving operation is performed. On the other hand, if there isan error in the image data memory 204, then the image data stored in theimage data memory 204 is transferred. In this transferring operation, animage data file stored in the image data memory 204 is retrieved first(step S305). The types of image data files stored in the image datamemory 204 include a memory-reception image data file, amemory-transmission image data file,a timer-transmission image datafile, a print image data file, and a polling-transmission image datafile. These image data files are accessed depending on the followingcauses or factors.

[0041] (1) A memory-reception image data file is accessed by a user andprinted out.

[0042] (2) A memory-transmission image data file is automaticallytransmitted as soon as the communication line becomes available.

[0043] (3) A timer-transmission image data file is automaticallytransmitted at a time set in the timer.

[0044] (4) A print image data file is printed as soon as the printer 215becomes available.

[0045] (5) A polling-transmission image data file is transmitted inresponse to a call-in from a polling receiving station.

[0046] In this embodiment, the transmission priorities are definedaccording to the types of image data files to improve the throughput ofthe apparatus. For example, a memory-reception image data file is a filethat is to be processed in response to user's access, and therefore thistype of file has a high transfer priority. A polling transmission imagedata file is a file that is accessed from the outside via thecommunication line 102, and therefore its transfer priority is set to alow level. More specifically, the priorities are set in the order ofmemory-reception image data files>timer-transmission image datafiles>memory-transmission image data files>print image data file>pollingtransmission image data file. In other words, files having a greaternecessity of remaining in the LAN-FAX 101 remain in the image datamemory 204 of the LAN-FAX 101.

[0047] In step S305, therefore, image data files are retrieved accordingto the above transfer priority order. Thus, the file type of an imagedata file to be transmitted is set (step S306), and the image data fileis then transferred to the server machine 103 (step S307).

[0048] The transfer of an image data file to the server machine 103 willbe described further. First, a transfer image data file is produced onthe basis of the address of the server machine 103 associated with theLAN 100. This transfer image data file is produced in accordance withthe protocol of the LAN 100 through which the file is to be transferred.In this embodiment, since the protocol of the LAN 100 is definedaccording to TCP/IP protocol, the transfer image data file isconstructed according to the TCP/IP protocol. That is, as shown in FIG.24, the transfer image data file is composed of an MAC (Media AccessControl) address, an IP header, a TCP header, data, and other fields. InFIG. 24, reference numeral 2403 denotes the destination's MAC address (6bytes), representing the destination to which data is to be sent.Reference numeral 2404 denotes the source's MAC address (6 bytes),representing the source from which the data is sent. MAC addresses areuniquely assigned to individual devices connected to the LAN. These MACaddresses correspond to a data link layer of the OSI layer 7. Referencenumeral 2406 denotes an IP header corresponding to the protocol of thenetwork layer in the OSI layer 7. In this IP header, addresses requiredfor accessing a device connected to the network are defined. That is,the IP header includes an IP address 2406 a of a source and an IPaddress 2406 b of a destination. Reference numeral 2407 denotes a TCPheader corresponding to a transport layer in which prescription is givenfor ensuring high reliability in the data transfer. Reference numeral2408 denotes a data field corresponding to an application layer of theOSI layer 7.

[0049] In this LAN-FAX 101, when the data destination designated by theMAC address 2403 is an apparatus connected to the LAN, the data isautomatically transferred to that apparatus designated by the address.

[0050] As described above, a transfer image data file is organizedaccording to the TCP/IP protocol, and thus includes MAC addresses, an IPheader, a TCP header, a data field, and other fields. In thisembodiment, when image data to be transferred is stored in memory of theserver machine 103, it is required to identify its file type and filenumber. For this purpose, the above-described data field includes acommand data file containing file information associated with the aboveitems as well as an image data file containing image data. A data filetransfer operation is controlled by transmitting both these files. Oftwo types of files, the command data file is analyzed by applicationsoftware for file type analysis stored in the server machine 103 wherebythe server machine 103 manages the file type of a transfer image datafile.

[0051] When the transfer image data file has been transferred to theserver machine 103 in step S307, the available area of the image datamemory 204 becomes greater than a required value. Thus, a receivingoperation to receive the image data starts, and one page of receptionimage data is stored in the image data memory 204 (step S308). Then, itis determined whether there is a next page in the reception image data(step S309). If there is a next page in the reception image data, thenthe process returns to step S304, in which the memory receivingoperation is continued.

[0052] On the other hand, if there is no further page in the receptionimage data, then it is determined whether the type of the image datafile that was transferred in step S307 is a highest-transfer-prioritymemory-reception image data file (step S310). If the transferred imagedata file is not of that type, the image data file that was transferredto the server machine 103 and saved there temporarily has a highertransfer priority than the image data (received image data file) thathas been stored in the image data memory 204 at this time in step S308.Therefore, the received image data file that has been stored at thistime in the image data memory 204 is replaced with the image data filethat was saved temporarily in the server machine 103.

[0053] That is, at the first step of the file replacement, the receivedimage data file that has been stored in the image data memory 204 istransferred to the server machine 103 (step S311). Of the image datafiles (transfer image data files) saved temporarily in the servermachine 103, that image data file having the lowest transfer priority istransferred back to the image data memory 204 first, then the image datafile having the next lowest transfer priority is transferred back next,and so on (step S312).

[0054] The above transferring-back operation is performed by sending atransferring-back request and the information on the remaining availablearea of the image data memory 204 to the server machine 103 according tothe TCP/IP protocol. The server machine 103 analyzes the types of thereceived transfer image data files under the control of theabove-described application software for file type analysis, andtransfers these files in turn in the order opposite to the transferpriority, taking into account the information on the remaining availablememory area received from the LAN-FAX 101. In the above operation, if auser of the LAN-FAX 101 issues a request for printing a received imagedata file stored in the server machine 103, the LAN-FAX 101automatically sends a transferring-back request to the server machine103 so as to print the requested file.

[0055] If the decision result in step S303 has shown that the printer215 is not in BUSY status, that is, if it is in NORMAL status, then itis determined whether the printer 215 is in the memory receiving mode ornot (step S313). If the printer 215 is in the memory receiving mode,then the process proceeds to step S304 to perform the memory receivingoperation.

[0056] On the other hand, if the printer 215 is not in the memoryreceiving mode, that is, if it is in the recording-on-recording-paperreceiving mode, then one page of data is received and recorded onrecording paper (step S314). Then, whether there is a next page in thereceiving image data is determined (step S315). If there is a next pagein the receiving image data, then the process returns to step S314 andcontinues the recording-on-recording-paper receiving operation. If thereis no further page in the receiving image data, the operation iscomplete.

[0057] In step S302, if it has been judged that the printer 215 is inthe ERROR status, then the data is transferred to the printing apparatus106 connected to the LAN 100, thereby outputting the data. First, inthis case, a print request is sent to the printer server 105 thatcontrols the spooling operation on the LAN 100 associated with printimage (step S401). Then, the status information of the printingapparatus 106 sent back in response to the above print request isanalyzed so as to determine whether the printing apparatus 106 isavailable or not (step S402). If the printing apparatus 106 is notavailable, the process proceeds to the above-described step S304.

[0058] If the printing apparatus 106 is available, then an image datareceiving operation starts (step S403), and the received image data istransferred in turn to the printer server 105 (step S404). In the abovetransferring operation, the image data is configured according to theTCP/IP protocol in which the image data is divided into several portionseach including a predetermined amount of image data, and then eachportion is transferred in turn. The printer server 105 stores thereceived image data. When the amount of the received image data hasreached one page, the printer server 105 transfers the received imagedata to a printing apparatus 106, which in turn prints the receivedimage data (step S405). Then, whether the image data receiving operationis complete or not is determined (step S406). If the operation is notcomplete yet, then the process returns to step S404 to continue thetransferring and printing operation. The process during steps S402through S405 is performed using application software for remote printingthat has been installed beforehand in the printer server 105.

[0059] After the completion of the receiving operation, the servermachine 103 sends a reception-report mail to the user who sent the dataso as to report that the received image data file has been printed bymeans of remote printing on a printing apparatus 106 connected to theLAN 100.

[0060] That is, in step S407, the LAN-FAX 101 produces reception-reportinformation based on the sender information obtained in step S301, andsends it to the server machine 103 (step S408). Then, the server machine103 produces a reception-report mail based on the reception-reportinformation received from the LAN-FAX 101, and sends thereception-report mail to the corresponding user (step S409), and thenthe process is complete.

[0061] In the above-described operation, the server machine 103 producesthe reception-report mail under the control of application software forreception-report mail production that has been installed beforehand inthe server machine 103. The destination of the reception-report mail isset by retrieving the address corresponding to the sender information,or the user name information from a log-in user address map that ismanaged by the server machine 103.

[0062] When the remote printing is performed, the address of theprinting apparatus 106 is stored in the RAM 203 so that the address maybe output later for confirmation.

[0063] The printing apparatus 106 itself also outputs a report tellingthat the remote printing has been performed.

[0064] In the first embodiment, as described above, if the remainingavailable area of the image data memory 204 for storing reception imagedata is insufficient, image data stored in the image data memory 204 istransferred to the server machine 103 so that the available area of theimage data memory 204 becomes sufficient to perform a receivingoperation.

[0065] Furthermore, priorities are defined for files to be transferredto the server machine 103 so that files having a greater necessity ofremaining in the LAN-FAX 101 can remain in the LAN-FAX 101, wherebyhigh-efficiency processing can be achieved.

[0066] If an error occurs in the printer 215 and thus the printer 215cannot print data, the print data is transferred to a printer server 105and printed by the printing apparatus 106. Furthermore, the address ofthe printing apparatus 106 that has printed the data is stored so thatit is possible to know which printing apparatus 106 has printed thedata. In the above processing, the LAN-FAX 101 produces reception-reportinformation based on the address information and sends it to the servermachine 103. The server machine 103 sends a reception-report mail to asending user to tell that the received data has been remote-printedusing a printing apparatus 106 so that the operator who sent the data tothe LAN-FAX 101 can easily know the result.

Second Embodiment

[0067] In the above first embodiment, if an error is detected in theLAN-FAX 101 during a receiving operation, image data is transferred tothe server machine 103. Alternatively, when the LAN-FAX 101 receives arequest to print a file such as a document file produced by a clientmachine (information processing terminal) 104 connected to the LAN 100,if an error is detected in the LAN-FAX 101, then the file such as adocument file to be printed (hereafter refer to as a print file) may betransferred to the printer server 105.

[0068] The printing operation by the LAN-FAX 101 will be describedreferring to the flow chart shown in FIG. 5. In this embodiment, theprint file is described using a page description language and is printedwith fonts developed by the printer formatter 216.

[0069] First, the LAN-FAX 101 accepts a print request from a clientmachine 104 (step S501). Then, the LAN-FAX 101 analyzes which clientmachine 104 has issued the print request, and obtains and sets addressinformation such as the IP address of the client machine 104 withrespect to the LAN 100 (step S502).

[0070] The print file is received via the LAN interface 214 and storedin image data memory 204 of the LAN-FAX 101 (step S503). In the aboveoperation, the transmission and reception of the print file areperformed according to the TCP/IP protocol.

[0071] The operation status of a printer installed in the LAN-FAX 101(hereafter referred to as a LAN-FAX printer) 215 is then checked, thatis, whether it is available or not is determined (step S504). If it isavailable, then the LAN-FAX printer 215 starts a printing operation toprint the print file (step S511). Once the printing operation iscomplete (step S512), the process is complete.

[0072] On the other hand, if the LAN-FAX printer 215 is not available,the operation status of a printing apparatus 106 connected to the LAN100 is checked to determined whether it is available or not (step S505).The availability of the printing apparatus 106 is determined from thestatus of the printer server 105 connected to the LAN 100, wherein thestatus is reported back in response to a printer status request sent tothe printer server 105.

[0073] If the printing apparatus 106 is not available, then the processreturns to step S504, in which the availability of the LAN-FAX printer215 is checked again. On the other hand, if the printing apparatus 106is available, then the print file is transferred to the printer server105 (step S506), and printed (remote-printed) by the printing apparatus106 (step S507). Then, whether the remote printing is complete or not isdetermined (step S508). If the remote printing is not complete, then theprocess returns to step S506 to continue the remote printing operation.

[0074] In the above operation, the print file is configured according tothe TCP/IP protocol in which the image data is divided into severalportions each including a predetermined amount of image data, and theneach portion is transferred in turn. The printer server 105 stores thereceived print file (image data). When the amount of the received imagedata has reached one page, the printer server 105 transfers the receivedimage data to a printing apparatus 106, which in turn prints thereceived image data. The process during steps S506 through S508 isperformed using application software for remote printing that has beeninstalled beforehand in the printer server 105.

[0075] Then, the server machine 103 sends a report mail to the user(terminal) who sent the data so as to report that the print file hasbeen printed by means of remote printing with a printing apparatus 106connected to the LAN 100. That is, in step S509, the LAN-FAX 101produces a remote print report mail based on the user addressinformation set in step S502, and sends it to the information processingterminal at the above user address (step S510), and then the process iscomplete.

[0076] In the second embodiment of the present invention, as describedabove, when the LAN-FAX 10 receives a print request from a clientmachine 104, if the printer 215 is incapable of printing it due to anerror, then printing is performed using a printing apparatus 106. Theserver machine 103 sends a report mail to a user who issued the printrequest to tell that the received data has been remote-printed so thatthe user can easily know the status from the report mail.

[0077] In the first embodiment described earlier, the destination ofreceived image data is designated by destination user name informationstored in the NSF frame. However, the present invention is not limitedto this. Alternatively, for example, a password may be stored in apassword (PWD) frame according to the prescription of the ITU-Tstandard, and the LAN-FAX 101 may convert the password to user nameinformation. In this case, the LAN-FAX 101 has a password table in whichuser name information corresponding to passwords is registered, and theLAN-FAX 101 converts a password to user name information by retrievingthe password table.

[0078] In the first embodiment, when an error is detected in the LAN-FAX101, an image data file is transferred to the server machine 103.However, the apparatus to which the data file is transferred is notlimited to the server machine 103. For example, the data file may alsobe transferred to memory of another LAN-FAX or peripheral apparatusconnected to the LAN. Furthermore, not only when the printer is in ERRORstatus, but also when the printer is in BUSY status, an image data filemay be transferred to a printing apparatus 106 or another LAN-FAX 101 soas to print the image data file.

[0079] In the first and second embodiments, the protocol associated withthe LAN is in accordance with the TCP/IP. However, the present inventionis not limited to this. For example, the protocol according to theSPX/IPX or the like may also be employed.

[0080] In the first embodiment, when an error is detected in the LAN-FAX101, an image data file is transferred according to the transferpriority that has been defined beforehand in connection with the filetype (attribute). However, the present invention is not limited to this.For example, the transfer priority may also be defined in connectionwith the size of an image data file or the storage time at which animage data file was stored in the image data memory. Alternatively, auser may define the transfer priority in an arbitrary way without fixingthe transfer priority.

[0081] In the first and second embodiments, when an error is detected inthe printer 215 of the LAN-FAX 101, data is transferred to the printerserver 105 so as to print the data using a printing apparatus 106. Inaddition to the above operation mode, which may be referred to as afirst mode, there may be a second operation mode in which printing isperformed when the printer 215 has recovered from the error and hasbecome capable of printing. Both modes may be registered beforehand inthe LAN-FAX 101.

[0082] Furthermore, in the first and second embodiments, the apparatusto which image data is to be transferred is not limited to only oneapparatus. Instead, the image data may be transferred to a plurality ofapparatuses. In this case, apparatuses are checked to determine if theyare available or not, and image data is transferred to the availableapparatuses, wherein information about the transfer destinations arememorized for each page.

Third Embodiment

[0083] In the first embodiment described earlier, if the available spaceof the image data memory 204 of the LAN-FAX 101 has become insufficient,image data stored in the image data memory 204 is transferred to aserver machine 103 so that the available space of the image data memory204 becomes sufficient to continue the process. In contrast, in a thirdembodiment described hereinbelow, image data stored in the image datamemory 204 remains there, and any further image data that is received istransferred to another apparatus connected to the LAN. With thisarrangement, the communication time can be shorten compared to thatrequired in the first embodiment. In this third embodiment, a method ofmanaging image data as well as a memory managing method will also bedescribed in detail.

[0084]FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating a memory areaconfiguration for explanation of the method of managing image datamemory 204 of the LAN-FAX 101 according to the present embodiment. InFIG. 6, reference numeral 601 denotes the entire memory area to bemanaged. In the LAN-FAX 101 of the present embodiment, the entire memoryarea 601 is divided into three areas: a transmission memory area (602);a reception memory area (603); and a common memory area (604) for use inboth transmitting and receiving operations. As denoted by referencenumeral 605, each memory area is further divided into n memory areas formanagement.

[0085]FIG. 16 schematically illustrates stored-page managementinformation according to the present embodiment. The stored-pagemanagement information and stored-data management information shown inFIG. 16 are stored in assigned areas of RAM 203.

[0086] The contents of the stored-page management information can beprinted out or displayed on a display device by issuing an instructionvia the operation panel 212. The stored-page number 1601 stores the pagenumber of stored data. The coding scheme of stored data 1602 stores thecoding scheme of the stored data. The resolution of stored data 1603stores the resolution of the stored data. The page size of stored data1604 stores the page size of the stored data. The stored-data startlocation pointer 1605 is a pointer for pointing the start location of amemory area in which the stored-data management information is actuallystored. The stored-data end location pointer 1606 is a pointer forpointing the end location of a memory area in which the stored-datamanagement information is actually stored. The next-stored-data pointer1607 is a pointer for pointing the location of a memory area in whichother stored-data management information is actually stored wherein thememory area is linked to the previous memory area. The memory type 1608stores information representing whether the stored data resides in theinternal memory of the LAN-FAX 101 or in memory of another terminalconnected to the LAN. Thestored-data-pointer/MAC-address-of-data-transfer-destination 1609 storesa pointer for pointing the stored data when the information stored inthe memory type 1608 indicates that the data is stored inside theLAN-FAX 101, or stores an MAC address of a terminal connected to the LANwhen the information stored in the memory type 1608 indicates that thedata is stored in the terminal connected to the LAN. The stored datalength 1619 stores the length of the stored data 1611, wherein thestored data 1611-is actual image data.

[0087]FIG. 17 schematically illustrates a table used to manage unusedstored-data management information according to the present embodimentof the invention.

[0088] In this figure, the number 1701 of remaining stored-datamanagement information stores the number of units of stored-datamanagement information remaining unused. The total number 1702 of unitsof stored-data management information stores the total number of thestored-data management information units. The unused stored-datamanagement-information start pointer 1703 points the location of thefirst stored-data management-information remaining unused. The unusedstored-data management-information end pointer 1704 points the locationof the last stored-data management-information remaining unused. Thenext unused stored-data management-information pointer 1705 points thelocation of the next stored-data management-information remainingunused.

[0089] Now, the control procedure of the LAN-FAX 101 according to thepresent embodiment of the invention will be described.

[0090] FIGS. 7-15 are flow charts illustrating the control procedure ofthe LAN-FAX 101 according to the present embodiment of the invention.

[0091] Referring to FIGS. 7-15, the control procedure during a memoryreception operation will be described below.

[0092] When a receiving operation starts in an image processingapparatus according to the present embodiment of the invention, memoryallocation is performed first (step S702 in the flow chart of FIG. 7). Amore detailed flow chart associated with this reception memoryallocation is shown in FIG. 10.

[0093] First, the stored-data management information is acquired via theunused stored-data management-information start pointer 1703 so as todetermine whether there is available room in the image data memory 204of the LAN-FAX 101 itself.

[0094] The decision result of step S1001 in FIG. 10 is negative in thiscase since the operation is in the receiving operation mode. Therefore,the process proceeds to step S1003, in which a positive decision resultis obtained and thus the process further proceeds to step S1004. In thisstep S1004, whether there is available room in the reception memory 603is examined. If there is available memory room in it, then memoryallocation is performed on the reception memory 603 (step S1006).

[0095] If it has been concluded in step S1004 that there is no availableroom in the reception memory 603, then it is examined whether there isavailable room in the common memory 604 (step S1005). If there isavailable room there, the common memory 604 is allocated (step S1006).

[0096] If the common memory 604 also has no available room, that is, ifthere is no available room anywhere in the image data memory 204 of theLAN-FAX 101, then the process proceeds to step S1008, in which memory ina terminal connected to the LAN is allocated (refer to FIG. 11).

[0097] If it has been concluded either in step S1003 or in step S1005that there is available room, then after step S1006 in which theavailable storage memory is allocated, the information indicating thatthe image data memory 204 of the LAN-FAX 101 itself is allocated as thereception memory is stored in the memory type 1608 (step S101). Thus,the memory allocation procedure is successfully completed (S1012) andreturns to the main procedure (S1013).

[0098] Referring to FIG. 11, the procedure (S1008) associated with thememory allocation to a terminal connected to the LAN will be describedin greater detail.

[0099] In step S1101, it is determined whether the LAN-FAX 101 isconnected to the LAN via the LAN I/F 214 of the LAN-FAX 101 itself, ornot.

[0100] If it has been concluded in step S1101 that the LAN-FAX 101 isconnected to the LAN, then inquiry is made as to where the image data isto be saved, and as to whether there is available room in the memory ofthe terminal to be allocated, so as to determine whether it is possibleor not to use the memory in the terminal connected to the LAN (S1102).

[0101] If it has been concluded in step S1102 that there is availablememory area, then the memory in the LAN terminal is allocated instead ofthe image data memory 204. The MAC address of the LAN terminal thememory of which has been acquired is stored in the MAC address 1609(step S1103). Thus, it has been concluded (step S1104) that it ispossible to save the data to the memory in the LAN terminal, and theprocedure associated with the memory allocation to the LAN terminalreturns to the main procedure (S1105). In the case where the LANterminal memory is available for saving the data, the receivingoperation is continued in step S704, and the data received hereafter issaved in the allocated memory.

[0102] Now, the data flow that occurs when memory of a LAN terminal isallocated will be described.

[0103] First, based on the LAN address of the file server, a transferimage data file is produced. This transfer image data file is configuredaccording to the protocol of the LAN to which the LAN-FAX 101 isconnected. More specifically, in this embodiment, the transfer imagedata file is configured according to the TCP/IP protocol.

[0104] The data configuration according to the TCP/IP protocol has beendescribed already, and therefore it will not be described here again.

[0105] If it has been concluded in step S1101 that the LAN-FAX 101 isnot connected to the LAN, or if it has been concluded in step S1102 thatit is impossible to acquire the LAN terminal memory, then an emergencybuffer (not shown) for busy-reception action is allocated. In this case,it is concluded that it is impossible to save the data in the LANterminal memory (step S1106), and thus the LAN terminal memoryallocation procedure returns to the main procedure with the resultindicating an memory allocation error.

[0106] In step S1009, it is determined whether the LAN terminal memoryacquisition is successful or not. If it has been concluded in step S1009that the LAN terminal memory has been acquired, then the memory in theLAN terminal is allocated, and information indicating that the LANterminal memory has been allocated as the reception memory is stored inthe memory type 1608 (S1011). Then, the memory allocation procedurereturns to the main procedure (S1013). On the other hand, if it has beenconcluded in step S1009 that the LAN terminal memory has not beenacquired, the memory allocation procedure returns to the main procedurewith the result indicating a memory allocation error (S1010, S1013).

[0107] In the case where the memory allocation in step S702 isunsuccessful, busy-reception action is performed (S707 in FIG. 8).

[0108] Referring to FIG. 8, the busy-reception action S707 will bedescribed in greater detail.

[0109] First, busy-communication-line action is performed, that is,information indicating that the LAN-FAX 101 is in a busy-receptionstatus is sent to the terminal with which the LAN-FAX 101 iscommunicating (S801).

[0110] In step S802, it is determined whether the LAN-FAX 101 hasrecovered from the busy status. If the LAN-FAX 101 has not recovered yetfrom the busy status, then the process continues step S801. If theLAN-FAX 101 has recovered from the busy status, then informationindicating that the the LAN-FAX 101 has recovered from the busy statusis sent to the terminal with which the LAN-FAX 101 is communicating(S803), and then the receiving operation is continued (S704).

[0111] On the other hand, in the case where the memory allocation instep S702 is successful, then the data receiving operation is continued(S704), and the process waits for the completion of the data receivingoperation (S705).

[0112] If the data receiving is not complete yet, then the processrepeats the steps from S702.

[0113] When all data has been received, the data reception closingoperation is performed (S706), and it is determined whether the receiveddata should be printed out or not (S708).

[0114] If it is required to print the received data, then theprinting-out operation is performed (S709), and all receiving operationsare complete (S712).

[0115] Referring to FIG. 12, the printing-out operation S709 will bedescribed in greater detail.

[0116] In step S1201, the status of the printer 215 is examined. If theprinter 215 is in a normal status and available, then the image data tobe transferred to the printer 215 is acquired (S1202).

[0117] Referring to FIG. 14, the image data acquisition process S1202will be described further.

[0118] First, whether there is stored data or not is determined byjudging whether the stored-data start location pointer 1605 correctlypoints stored data (S1401). If there is no stored data, the image dataacquisition process S1202 returns to the main process with a resultindicating no stored data (S1411, S1412).

[0119] If it has been concluded in step S1401 that there is stored data,then the data source associated with the memory is identified (S1402)from the information stored in the memory type 1608, and it isdetermined whether the stored data resides in the image data memory 204of the LAN-FAX 101 itself or not (S1403).

[0120] If the stored data resides in the image data memory 204 of theLAN-FAX 101 itself, then the stored data is acquired from the image datamemory 204 (S1404). Thus, the image data acquisition process has beencompleted successfully, and processing returns to the main process(S1405, S1412).

[0121] In the case where the stored data does not reside in the imagedata memory 204 of the LAN-FAX 101 itself, the terminal informationassociated with the MAC address of a LAN terminal in which the storeddata resides is acquired from theMAC-address-of-data-transfer-destination 1609 (S1406). Then, inquiry ismade as to whether the LAN terminal has the stored data (S1407).

[0122] If yes, then the stored-data is acquired from the LAN terminal(S1409), and the process returns to the main process with a successfulresult (S1405, S1412).

[0123] On the other hand, if the result of the above inquiry about thestored data is negative, then the process returns to the main processwith a result representing a data-acquisition error (S1410, S1412).

[0124] If the image data has been acquired successfully in step S1202,then the image data is transferred to the printer 215 (S1204). After thesuccessful completion of the transfer, the memory is released (S1205),and step S1201 and the subsequent steps are continued. If there is noimage data or if it is impossible to acquire image data, then theprinting-out process simply returns to the main process (S1206).

[0125] If it has been concluded in step S1201 that the printer 215 isnot in a normal status, then the process waits for the recovery of theprinter 215 (S1207).

[0126] Referring to FIG. 15, the memory releasing process S1205 will bedescribed below in more detail.

[0127] The data source associated with the memory is identified (S1501)from the information stored in the memory type 1608, and it isdetermined whether the stored data resides in a LAN terminal memory(S1502).

[0128] If it has been concluded in step S1502 that the stored dataresides in the LAN terminal memory, the MAC address of the LAN terminalto which the data was transferred is acquired from theMAC-address-of-data-transfer-destination 1609 (S1503). After sending amessage to the LAN terminal saying that the memory will be released(S1504), the stored-data management information is linked to the unusedstored-data management-information end pointer 1704. Then, the memoryreleasing process returns to the main process (S1506).

[0129] On the other hand, if it has been concluded in step S1502 thatthe stored data does not reside in the LAN terminal memory, then thestatus of the memory managed by the LAN-FAX 101 itself is changed to anunused status (S1505), and then the stored-data management informationis linked to the unused stored-data management-information end pointer1704. Then, the memory releasing process returns to the main process(S1506).

[0130] If it has been concluded in step S708 of FIG. 7 that it is notrequired to print out the received data, then it is determined whetherthe received data is required to be transferred to a LAN terminal(S710).

[0131] If the received data is required to be transferred to the LANterminal, the received data is transferred to the LAN terminal in stepS711, and thus the entire receiving process is complete (S712).

[0132] Referring to FIG. 13, the process S711 of the data transfer to aLAN terminal will be described below in more detail.

[0133] The information such as the MAC address of a LAN terminal towhich the data is to be transferred is acquired from theMAC-address-of-data-transfer-destination 1609 (S1301). The status of theLAN terminal is examined in step S1302. If the LAN terminal is in anormal status, then the image data to be transferred is acquired(S1303). The image data acquisition process in step S1303 is essentiallythe same as that in step S1202 shown in FIG. 12, and therefore it willbe not described here again.

[0134] If the image data has been acquired successfully in step S1303,the image data is transferred to the LAN terminal (S1305). After thesuccessful completion of the data transfer, the memory is released, andstep S1201 and the subsequent steps are continued.

[0135] The memory releasing process S1306 is essentially the same asthat in step S1205 shown in FIG. 12, and therefore it will be notdescribed here again.

[0136] In step S1304, if there is no image data or if it is impossibleto acquire image data, then the process simply returns to the mainprocess (S1307).

[0137] In step S1302, if the LAN terminal is not in a normal status,then the process waits for the recovery of the LAN terminal (S1308).

[0138] If the received data is not required to be transferred to the LANterminal, then the entire receiving process is complete (S712).

[0139] In the third embodiment described above, even if the availablespace in the image data memory 204 of the LAN-FAX 101 has becomeinsufficient, received data can be stored in memory of another apparatusconnected to the LAN. Therefore, it is possible to continue the datareception without a break or a communication delay.

[0140] Furthermore, since the LAN-FAX 101 has the capability of managingthe information such as the location where the stored data resides, thepage number, the data amount, an operator can easily know the presentsituation.

[0141] The present embodiment also allows the LAN-FAX 101 to performhigh-capacity communication without expanding the image data memory 204in the LAN-FAX 101 itself.

Fourth Embodiment

[0142] In a fourth embodiment described below, memory transmission isachieved according to a method similar to that in the third embodiment.

[0143]FIG. 9 is a flow chart illustrating the transmission procedure ina LAN-FAX according to the present embodiment of the invention. Atransmission process starts at step S901, and the LAN-FAX reads data tobe transmitted (S902).

[0144] Here, the data to be transmitted includes image data that is readby the scanner 211, data that is sent to the LAN-FAX 101 from anotherLAN terminal via the LAN I/F 214, etc.

[0145] In this LAN-FAX according to the present embodiment, when thereading of the transmission data starts, memory allocation is performed(S903) in parallel to the reading operation so that the transmissiondata can be stored in the allocated area of the image data memory in theLAN-FAX.

[0146] This memory allocation process is shown in more detail in FIG.10. In step S1001 shown in FIG. 10, the decision result is yes since theprocess is now in the middle of the transmission operation, and thus theprocess proceeds to step S1002.

[0147] In step S1002 shown in FIG. 10, the availability of memory spacein the transmission memory 602 is examined. If there is available memoryin it, then the transmission memory 602 is allocated (S1006). However,if there is no available room in the transmission memory 602, theavailability of the common memory 604 is examined (S1005). If there isavailable area in it, then the common memory is allocated (S1006).

[0148] If neither the transmission memory 602 nor the common memory 604has available area, then the process proceeds to the LAN allocationprocess (S1008) as in the case of the receiving operation. This LANallocation process is performed in substantially the same manner as inthe case of the receiving operation in the third embodiment describedabove, and therefore the description about it will not be repeated here.In the memory allocation process S903, if the memory allocation hasfailed, then the data reading operation such as the reading of the imagedata via the scanner 211 is suspended, and a busy-transmission action isperformed (S912). The process waits for successful completion of thememory allocation.

[0149] If the memory allocation is successfully complete in the memoryallocation process S903, then the data reading operation is continued(S905). The process waits for the completion of the data readingoperation in step S906.

[0150] If the data reading operation is not complete yet, step S903 andthe subsequent steps are repeated.

[0151] When the data reading operation is complete, a transmissionoperation starts (S907), and the data to be transmitted is acquired(S908).

[0152] Here, the data acquisition process is essentially the same asthat in the receiving operation, and therefore the duplicateddescription about it will not be given.

[0153] If the transmission data has been successfully acquired in thedata acquisition process S908, then the acquired transmission data istransmitted according to the communication protocol of the LAN-FAX(S910). Then, steps S908 and the subsequent steps are continuedrepeatedly.

[0154] In the data acquisition process S908, if there is no transmissiondata, or if the transmission data acquisition has failed, then theentire transmission process is simply terminated (S911).

[0155] In the fourth embodiment described above, the transmissionoperation can be performed without a break in the operation due to lackof the available memory area in the transmission memory. The presentembodiment also allows the LAN-FAX 101 to perform high-capacitycommunication without expanding the image data memory 204 in the LAN-FAX101 itself.

[0156] The communication line to which the LAN-FAX is connected is notlimited to the ISDN or PSTN. The LAN-FAX may also be connected forexample to an existing digital communication network, a privatecommunication line, or other types of communication lines.

[0157] Furthermore, the protocol used in the LAN is not limited to theTPC/IP. Any other type of protocol such as the SPX/IPX may also beemployed.

Fifth Embodiment

[0158] As described above, when a facsimile apparatus is connected to aLAN, it is possible to detect an error or failure that occurs inside theLAN-FAX. However, an error or failure in the LAN, such as disconnectionof a communication cable, has to be detected by a user by means ofvisual inspection or the like. In this fifth embodiment described here,the LAN-FAX 101 has the capability of detecting such an error in theLAN.

[0159] Referring to the flow chart shown in FIG. 18, the receivingoperation of the LAN-FAX 101 according to the present embodiment of theinvention will be described.

[0160] First, the reception service stored in a frame that has beenreceived at the beginning of a call from a sending station is analyzed(step S1801). In this reception service analysis, the DCS (digitalcommand signal) in a G3-type facsimile, NSF (non-standard function)frame, etc., are analyzed. Based on the analysis result, it isdetermined whether the requested reception service is a data transfer toa terminal connected to the LAN 100 (step S1802). If data transfer isrequested, then it is determined whether the LAN 100 is in an errorstatus or not (step S1803). The status of the LAN is set in such amanner described later referring to the flow chart of FIG. 19. If it hasbeen concluded that there is an error in the LAN 100, then thecommunication line is disconnected (step S1811), and the receivingoperation is terminated. In the case of the G3-type facsimile procedure,the above disconnection of the communication line is performed bysending a DCN (disconnection) command after receiving an NSF and TCF(training check).

[0161] In step S1803, if it has been concluded that the LAN 100 is in anormal status, then data is received from a sending station according tothe normal receiving procedure (step S1804). After the completion of thereceiving operation, the communication line connected to an existingcommunication network (public telephone network) 102 is disconnected(step S1805), and then the received data is transferred to the servermachine 103 from the LAN-FAX 101.

[0162] The data transfer to the server machine 103 will be describedbelow in greater detail. First, based on the address of the servermachine 103 with respect to the LAN 100, a transfer image (receivedimage) data file is produced. This transfer image data file isconfigured according to the protocol of the LAN 100 to which the LAN-FAX101 is connected. In this embodiment, since the protocol of the LAN 100is defined according to TCP/IP protocol as described above, the transferimage data file is configured according to the TCP/IP protocol. Theobtained transfer image data file is sent out via the LAN interface 214of the LAN-FAX 101 so as to transfer the data file to the server machine103 via the LAN 100. If a user of the LAN-FAX 101 issues a printingcommand, a transfer-back request is automatically sent to the servermachine 103, and the received image data file that was transferred tothe server machine 103 is printed out.

[0163] The data configuration according to the TCP/IP has been describedabove already, and therefore it will not be described here.

[0164] After the LAN-FAX 101 has transferred the image data fileassociated with the received data, the LAN-FAX 101 deletes the receiveddata (step S1807). Then, the receiving operation is complete. In theabove deleting process, the transfer image data stored in the image datamemory 204 is deleted.

[0165] If it has been concluded in step S1802 that the requestedreception service is not a data transfer, then the data is receivedaccording to the normal receiving procedure (step S1808). Then, thecommunication line is disconnected (step S1809). After the disconnectionof the communication line, the received image data is printed out usingthe printer 215 (step S1810), and thus the receiving operation iscomplete.

[0166] In the above steps from S1808 through S1810, the operation is thesame as in the case of a usual facsimile apparatus that is not connectedto the LAN 100, wherein the received data may also be printed out beforethe completion of the disconnection of the communication line, or thereceived data may not be printed out depending on the requested service.Furthermore, as for steps S1805 and S1806, step S1806 may be performedfirst, followed by step S1805, or otherwise, these steps may beperformed at the same time.

[0167] Referring to the flow chart of FIG. 19, the error detection ofthe LAN 100 will be described.

[0168] The error detection of the LAN 100 is performed by the LAN-FAX101 at time intervals set in a TL timer (step S1901). A user can set theTL timer to an arbitrary interval value. Thus, at the end of each timeinterval designated by the TL timer, the LAN-FAX 101 determines whetherit is in the middle of a communication operation (step S1902). If theLAN-FAX 101 is in the middle of the communication, the error detectionof the LAN 100 is performed after the completion of the communication.(step S1908).

[0169] If the LAN-FAX 101 is not in a communicating operation, then theerror detection is performed immediately. In either case, at thebeginning of the error detection process, dummy data or test data issent to the LAN 100 (step S1903).

[0170] A LAN terminal usually has two ports, a transmission port and areception port, so that both transmitting and receiving operations canbe performed at the same time via these two ports. In the presentembodiment, it is assumed that the apparatus has the capability of theabove-described simultaneous operations. In most LANs such as Ethernet(registered trademark of Xerox), data transmitted by one terminal issent via a bus-type network to all terminals including the terminalitself that has transmitted the data whereby communication amongarbitrary terminals is achieved. In the present embodiment,communication is performed according to this method.

[0171] In step S1904, the original dummy data (test data) that wastransmitted to the LAN 100 in step S1903 is compared with the data thathas returned back to the LAN-FAX 101 after the traveling via the LAN100. It is determined whether these two data are coincident with eachother. (step S1905). If both data are coincident with each other, theLAN 100 is regarded as normal and a normal LAN operation is performedaccording to a predetermined procedure (step S1907), and then theprocess returns to step S1901. If there is a difference between theabove two data, it is concluded that there is an error in the LAN 100.In this case, a LAN error process is performed according to apredetermined procedure (step S1906), and then the process returns tostep S1901.

[0172] In the normal LAN operation, information indicating that the LAN100 is in a normal status is given via the external display 217, or theinformation indicating that the LAN 100 is in a normal status isdirectly written in the LAN status without displaying any information onthe external display 217. On the other hand, in the LAN error process,information indicating that there is an error in the LAN 100 is givenvia the external display 217, and the information indicating that theLAN 100 is in a normal status is written in the LAN status. This LANstatus is referred to during the receiving operation shown in FIG. 18.As described above, the process periodically returns to step 1901 so asalways to provide the newest LAN status to a user.

[0173]FIG. 20 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example of anindicator for indicating the LAN status to a user.

[0174] In FIG. 20, reference numeral 2001 denotes a ten-key used forinputting particular data associated with for example PB tones or dialpulses, or used for setting the TL timer interval or the error detectiontime interval, and reference numeral 2002 denotes start and stop keysused for starting or stopping the operation of the facsimile apparatus,wherein elements 2001 and 2002 are parts of the operation panel 212shown in FIG. 2.

[0175] Reference numeral 2003 denotes a message display composed of anLCD or the like, and reference numeral 2004 denotes an LED forindicating the occurrence of an error in the LAN. These elements 2003and 2004 form the external display 217 shown in FIG. 2. When an erroroccurs in the LAN, the message display 2003 displays a messageindicating what should be done to solve the error, as shown in FIG. 20.Reference numeral 2005 denotes a loudspeaker for generating a soundwarning of the occurrence of an error in the LAN.

[0176] As long as the LAN status includes information indicating thatthere is an error in the LAN 100, the message display 2003, LED 2004,and loudspeaker 2005 continue the indication of the occurrence of theerror in the LAN. However, if the operation panel 212 is operated, thenthe LAN-FAX understands that a user has acquired the occurrence of theerror in the LAN, and the LAN status changes to a normal status. Thus,the message display 2003, LED 2004, and loudspeaker 2005 stop theindication of the LAN error.

[0177] In the receiving operation according to the fifth embodiment,when an error in the LAN 100 is detected, a call to the LAN-FAX isrefused. However, the present invention is not limited to this. Forexample, the LAN-FAX may accept a call containing data that is requestedto be transferred without refusing it, and may print out the datainstead of transferring it. In this case, if it has been concluded instep S1803 of FIG. 18 that the LAN status indicates an error, steps51808 through S1810 are performed. Furthermore, if the image data memory204 has a large capacity, the received data may be stored in the memory204 without printing it out. The information about the above result isgiven to a data source station as well as the LAN-FAX 101.

[0178] In the receiving operation according to the fifth embodiment, thetype of service on the received image data is designated by the serviceinformation stored in the NSF frame. However, the designation method isnot limited to this.

[0179] For example, a password is stored in a password (PWD) frameaccording to the prescription of the ITU-T, so that the LAN-FAX 101converts the password to service information or the address to which thereceived data is to be transferred. Furthermore, the existingcommunication network is not limited to the public telephone network. Adigital communication line such as the ISDN may also be employed. Inthis case, the type of the service on the received image data may bedesignated by a command or a control document such as CSS, CDCL, CDS,etc., used in the G4-type facsimile.

[0180] Furthermore, in the fifth embodiment, the protocol of the LAN isdefined according to the TPC/IP. Alternatively, another type of protocolsuch as the SPX/IPX may also be employed.

[0181] In the fifth embodiment, the LAN-FAX 100 gives a warning of theoccurrence of an error to a user by means of a visual or audibleexpression. Alternatively, the LAN-FAX 101 sends an audio signal or datato a system manager or an administrative system server via an existingcommunication line so that a proper action to eliminate the error can betaken.

[0182] According to the fifth embodiment of the invention, as describedabove, there is provided a facsimile apparatus connected to both anexisting communication line and a LAN, that has the capability ofdetecting an error in the LAN thereby allowing a user to do properaction for the error. That is, the facsimile apparatus according to thepresent embodiment has the capability of monitoring the occurrence of anerror in the LAN at periodic intervals set to an arbitrary value by auser. Furthermore, when an error occurs in the LAN, information of theerror occurrence is given to a user, thereby allowing the user toproperly deal with the error before starting the operation of thefacsimile apparatus. Thus, the facsimile apparatus according to thepresent embodiment of the invention provides an excellent userinterface.

[0183] Furthermore, if the facsimile apparatus receives a call whenthere is an error in the LAN, the type of received data is determined.If the data transfer is requested, then the facsimile apparatus refusesthe reception of the call thereby preventing the memory of the facsimileapparatus from being full. Thus, the facsimile apparatus according tothe present embodiment of the invention provides improved capabilities.

Sixth Embodiment

[0184] In one of techniques known in the art, an external apparatus suchas a personal computer is connected to a facsimile apparatus so that theexternal apparatus issues various commands associated with reading,transmission, or other operations to the facsimile apparatus. However,in the above known technique, the external apparatus that is connectedto the facsimile apparatus must have a special capability.

[0185] Furthermore, in the case where a plurality of client machines andfacsimile apparatuses are connected to a LAN, only a special clientmachine can issue commands to force the facsimile apparatuses toparticular operations.

[0186] In view of the above, a sixth embodiment of the inventionprovides a method that allows a plurality of client machines connectedto a LAN to make effective use of a facsimile apparatus.

[0187] Referring to the time chart shown in FIG. 21, an example ofautomatically setting a mode of a LAN-FAX 101 will be described below.

[0188] If a packet associated with a transmission request is sent from acertain client machine 104 to the LAN-FAX 101 at timing denoted by (1)in FIG. 21, then the operation mode is set to a transmission mode, andthe LAN-FAX starts a transmission operation to transmit the packetassociated with the transmission request to a designated destination. Inthis case, as a matter of course, the packet contains a transmissionrequest in its data area. The term “timing” is used here to refer to thetiming of the packet according to the TCP/IP protocol that is employedhere as the protocol of the LAN 100.

[0189] Furthermore, if the LAN-FAX 101 receives another packetassociated with a print request from another client machine 104 attiming (2), then the LAN-FAX 101 additionally establishes a print(record) mode and starts a print operation to print the data containedin the packet associated with the print request using the printer 215.In this case, the CPU 201 performs control operations associated withboth transmission and print in parallel by means of time-sharing.

[0190] After the completion of the transmission of the successive datawherein the data was divided into a plurality of packets and sent to theLAN-FAX 101 from the client at the timing (1), the transmission mode isreset. In this state, at timing (3), if the LAN-FAX 101 has receivedanother packet associated with a transmission request from still anotherclient machine 104, the LAN-FAX 101 is set again so that the LAN-FAX 101can operate in a transmission mode and a transmission operation isstarted so as to transmit the packet associated with the transmissionrequest to a designated destination.

[0191] In this way, packets are sent in sequence to the LAN-FAX, and theLAN-FAX automatically sets a proper operation mode based on the modesetting information (processing command) contained in the respectivepackets so as to perform an operation such as communication, printing,or reading corresponding to the mode set above. As for the processcommands, standard process commands may be employed, or otherwise, anycommands set by a user may also be used. In this way, each client canaccomplish a desired operation without being aware of the operationstatus of the LAN-FAX 101. In this embodiment, furthermore, there is noneed to have a personal computer dedicated for the LAN-FAX 101.

[0192] Now, process commands provided by each client machine 104 will bedescribed. A client machine 104 that desires to make use of a functionof the LAN-FAX 101 (it is assumed here that the client machine 104 isgoing to make a transmission request) produces a transmission image datafile based on the address of the client machine itself with respect tothe LAN 100. This transmission image data file is configured accordingto the protocol of the LAN to which the client machine 104 is connected.More specifically, the protocol of the LAN in this embodiment is definedaccording to the TCP/IP protocol, and therefore the transmission imagedata file is configured according to the TCP/IP protocol. The dataconfiguration according to the TCP/IP has been described alreadyearlier, and therefore it is not explained here again.

[0193] The data field 2408 includes data such as image data and processcommands. Since the maximum data length of this data field 2408 islimited as shown in FIG. 24, when image data or other data istransmitted, a plurality of packets are sent for one process (printprocess, for example).

[0194] In this embodiment, when image data to be transmitted is storedin memory of the server machine 103, it is required to identify its filetype, file number, and process mode. For this purpose, a command dataheader containing the above file information and an image data filecontaining image data are disposed in the above data field, therebyachieving correct transmission control. The file information containedin the command data header is analyzed by application software for filetype analysis installed on the server machine 103, whereby the type ofthe image file and other information are managed by the server machine103.

[0195] Referring to the flow chart shown in FIG. 22, the automaticsetting of the process mode of the LAN-FAX 101 will be described below.

[0196] First, the LAN-FAX 101 receives, via the LAN interface 214, theabove file sent from the server machine 103 in the form of packets, andaccepts a request represented by a process command (step S2201). Then,the accepted process command is analyzed to determine what operationmode is requested, and the new operation mode is set based on the aboveanalysis result of the process command (step S2202). Thus, the operationmode is set to one of: a communication mode; printing mode; or readingmode.

[0197] Then, it is determined whether the new operation mode iscoincident with the current operation mode that was set previously (stepS2203). Even if both modes are coincident with each other in the abovecomparison process, the received data will be regarded as invalid dataif there is an inconsistency in the address of the client machine 104(or otherwise if a message is sent to the server machine 103 to tellthat the data is unacceptable because the LAN-FAX is busy with anotherdata of the same type).

[0198] On the other hand, if the new operation mode is not coincidentwith the current operation mode that was set previously, the newoperation mode is employed as the current operation mode via theselector 218 (step S2204), and then the process proceeds to step S2205.If the new operation mode is coincident with the current operation modethat was set previously, the process proceeds to step S2205 withoutchanging the operation mode.

[0199] If the current operation mode is changed to a communication mode,the communication line or the LAN connection is changed via the selector218 so that the LAN-FAX is connected to the destination to which thedata is to be transmitted.

[0200] Then, the type of the operation mode corresponding to the processcommand (associated with the new mode) is detected (step S2205), and aninstruction directing that the operation corresponding to the detectedmode should start is given (steps S2206-S2208). According to thisinstruction, if it has been concluded that the new operation modecorresponding to the command contained in the packet is for example atransmission mode, then the data that has been received this time andthat is requested to be transmitted is stored in the transmissionmemory. Thus, the transmission operation starts to transmit the data toanother facsimile apparatus via the communication line 102. In the abovetransmission operation, the data is transmitted via the LAN 100, at arate of 10 Mbps in the case of the 10-Base-T connection of Ethernet, forexample. In contrast, the data is transmitted via the communication line102 at a rate of 19.2 Kbps. This great difference in the transmissionrate allows the communication to be performed smoothly without makingthe communication line 102 wait for data arrival of data via the LAN100.

[0201] If the operation mode corresponding to the command contained inthe packet received this time is a recording mode, then the printerformatter 216 performs data conversion on the data contained in thepackets that have been received this type wherein the data is requestedto be recorded. When one page of data has been converted, the printer215 starts a printing operation to print the data (step S2207). On theother hand, if the operation mode corresponding to the command containedin the packet received this time is a reading mode, then a readingoperation starts, and the image data that has been read via the scanner211 is transferred via the LAN interface 214 to the server machine 103(step S2208).

[0202] Then, it is determined whether the command data header of thepacket that has been received at this time includes an end-of-mode codedeclaring the end of the process (step S2209). If there is noend-of-mode code, and thus the end of the process is not declared, thenthe process is simply complete. On the other hand, if there is anend-of-mode code and thus the end of the process is declared, then theprocess mode that is declared to be ended, that is the process modecorresponding to the command contained in the packet received this time,is reset so that the process mode can be set to a new mode (step S2210),and then the process is complete.

[0203] In this way, the process mode is automatically set based on aprocess command contained in each packet. In the case where a pluralityof process modes are set, the CPU 201 performs control operationsassociated with the plurality of process modes in parallel by means oftime-sharing.

Seventh Embodiment

[0204] In the sixth embodiment described above, the process mode isautomatically set in turn based on the packet sent from each clientmachine 104 via the LAN 100. However, since one process is comprised ofa plurality of packets, the process mode may also be automatically setto a corresponding mode, and then the process mode may be fixed to it,that is, the process mode is set to a fixed process mode, until oneprocess-has been complete. After the completion of one process, theprocess mode may be automatically switched to a new mode if necessary.

[0205] The fixed process mode according to the seventh embodiment of theinvention will be described further referring to the flow chart shown inFIG. 23.

[0206] In the fixed process mode, the LAN-FAX receives via the LANinterface 214 a file sent in the form of packets from the server machine103, and accepts a request represented by a process command (stepS2301). Then, the accepted process command is analyzed to determine whatoperation mode is requested, and the new operation mode is set based onthe above analysis result of the process command Thus, the operationmode is set to one of: a communication mode; printing mode; or readingmode. (step S2302).

[0207] Subsequently, it is determined whether the process mode is acontinuation mode or not (step S2303). At the first reception of apacket after the starting of the apparatus and at the first reception ofa packet after the completion of one process, the process mode isassumed to be not a continuation mode. At the second reception of apacket, it is determined whether the new mode is coincident with thecurrent mode. If both are coincident with each other, the process modeis set to a continuation process mode. At the third and the subsequentreception of packets, it is determined whether the process mode has beenset to a continuation mode or not.

[0208] If it has been concluded in step S2303 that the process mode is acontinuation mode, then the process is simply complete, and thus thereceived packet is regarded as an invalid packet. In this case, amessage may be sent to the server machine 103 to tell that the data isunacceptable because the LAN-FAX is busy with processing of another datain the same processing mode, and then the process may be complete. Evenif the new and current modes are coincident with each other at thesecond reception of a packet described above, the received data will beregarded as an invalid data if there is an inconsistency in the addressof the client machine 104.

[0209] On the other hand, if it has been concluded that the process modeis not a continuation mode, then, the type of the process modecorresponding to the process command (associated with the new mode) isdetected (step S2304), and the new mode is employed as the currentprocess mode via the mode selector 218. Then, an instruction directingthat the operation corresponding to the detected mode should start isgiven (steps S2305-S2307).

[0210] Then, it is determined whether the command data header of thepacket that has been received this time includes an end-of-mode codedeclaring the end of the process (step S2209). If there is noend-of-mode code, and thus the end of the process is not declared, thenthe process is complete after setting the process mode to a continuationmode. On the other hand, if there is an end-of-mode code and thus theend of the process is declared, then the process mode associated withthe command contained in the received packet and the continuation modeare reset so that the process mode can be set to a new mode (stepS2309), and then the process is complete.

[0211] In this way, the process mode of the LAN-FAX 101 is fixed untilone process (transmission process, for example) has been complete. Whenthe next packet has been received after the completion of one process(transmission process, for example), the process mode is set to a newmode corresponding to the process command contained in the receivedpacket.

[0212] In the sixth and seventh embodiments, the protocol of the LAN 100is defined according to the TPC/IP. However, the protocol is not limitedonly to this, and another type of protocol such as the SPX/IPX may alsobe employed. Furthermore, in the sixth and seventh embodiments, theprocess mode is automatically set based on a process command receivedvia the LAN. Alternatively, the process mode may also be automaticallyset based on a process command received via the communication line 101.

[0213] In the sixth and seventh embodiments, the process mode isautomatically determined based on process commands described in commandheaders that are sent sequentially. Alternatively, the priority may bedefined for each process mode, and if a process command corresponding toa process mode having high priority has been received during a certainconstant time period, this process mode may be employed in preference toother modes. Furthermore, instead of employing the fixed priority of themodes, a user may also set the priority of the modes.

[0214] In the sixth and seventh embodiments, as described above, theLAN-FAX includes: an interface via which the LAN-FAX is connected to theLAN; analysis means for analyzing a process command received via the LANor the existing communication line; mode setting means for setting theprocess mode so that a process corresponding to the process commandanalyzed by the analysis means is performed via communication means,recording means, or reading means. In this arrangement, there is no needto have a dedicated personal computer acting as a facsimile server.Furthermore, there is no need for a user to set various modes of thefacsimile apparatus via a dedicated personal computer. Thus, it ispossible to connect the facsimile apparatus to a LAN in addition to anexisting communication line at a low cost, and it is also possible tomake effective use of the capability of the facsimile apparatus.

[0215] As described above, the present invention provides a dataprocessing apparatus connected to a LAN, that has no problems such asthose in conventional techniques, wherein its various capabilities canbe used effectively.

[0216] While the present invention has been described with reference tospecific preferable embodiments, the description is illustrative of theinvention and is not to be construed as limiting the invention. It willbe apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications arepossible without departing from the true spirit and scope of theinvention as defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A data processing apparatus connectable to a LAN,comprising: input means for inputting data; communication means fortransmitting and receiving data; output means for outputting the datathat has been input via said input means or received via saidcommunication means; detection means for detecting an error state insaid output means; transfer means for transferring the data to anotherapparatus connected to the LAN thereby outputting the data via the otherapparatus in a case where said detection means has detected an errorstate in said output means; and storage means for storing informationidentifying the other apparatus to which the data has been transferredvia said transfer means.
 2. A data processing apparatus according toclaim 1 , wherein the data to be transferred via said transfer means isconfigured according to the TCP/IP protocol.
 3. A data processingapparatus connectable to a LAN, comprising: storage means for storingimage data; decision means for determining whether said storage meanscan store image data or not; and transfer means for transferring theimage data to another apparatus connected to the LAN in the case wheresaid decision means has determined that said storage means is in astatus in which it cannot store the image data, wherein said transfermeans determines the image data to be transferred according to anattribute of the image data, and then transfers the image data.
 4. Adata processing apparatus according to claim 3 , wherein the data to betransferred via said transfer means is configured according to theTCP/IP protocol.
 5. A data processing apparatus according to claim 4 ,wherein said transfer means defines the priority of the image data basedon its attribute, and transfers the image data in the order according toits defined priority.
 6. A data processing apparatus connectable to aLAN, comprising: image data storage means for storing image data;decision means for determining whether said image data storage means canstore image data or not; ascertaining means for ascertaining whetheranother apparatus connected to the LAN has the capability of saving theimage data in a case where said decision means has determined that saidimage data storage means is in a status in which it cannot store theimage data; transfer means for transferring the image data to the otherapparatus connected to the LAN in a case where said ascertaining meanshas ascertained that the other apparatus has the capability of savingthe image data; and management information storage means for storingmanagement information to identify the other apparatus to which theimage data has been transferred via said transfer means.
 7. A dataprocessing apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein said managementinformation storage means stores page number, coding scheme, resolution,page size, transfer destination, and data amount of the image data.
 8. Adata processing apparatus connectable to a LAN, comprising: receivingmeans for receiving image data; transfer means for transferring theimage data received via said receiving means to another apparatusconnected to the LAN; detection means for detecting an error in the LANwhich error makes it impossible to transfer the image data via saidtransfer means; and output means for outputting an indication of theerror in the LAN detected by said detection means.
 9. A data processingapparatus according to claim 8 , wherein, in a case where said detectionmeans has detected an error in the LAN, said receiving means refusesreception of image data that requires transfer via said transfer means,and receives image data that does not require transfer via said transfermeans.
 10. A data processing apparatus according to claim 9 , whereinsaid detection means performs an operation for detecting an error, atarbitrary time intervals.
 11. A data processing apparatus according toclaim 10 , wherein said output means outputs a visible indication and/oran audible signal for indicating the error in the LAN.
 12. A dataprocessing apparatus connectable to a LAN, comprising: reading means forreading an image of an original document or printed material;communication means for transmitting and receiving image data; outputmeans for outputting image data; analysis means for analyzing a processcommand contained in a packet received via the LAN or via acommunication line; and setting means for setting a process mode basedon the process command analyzed by said analysis means, wherein saidreading means, said communication means, and said output means performtheir processes in said process mode, wherein, when said setting meanshas set the process mode to a reading mode, reading of the image of theoriginal document or the printed material is performed, when saidsetting means has set the process mode to a communication mode, datacontained in the received packet is transmitted via the communicationline or the LAN, and when said setting means has set the process mode toan output mode, the data contained in the received packet is output. 13.A data processing apparatus according to claim 12 , wherein said settingmeans sets the process mode for each packet received via the LAN or thecommunication line, wherein said process mode is set according to aprocess command contained in said each packet.
 14. A data processingapparatus according to claim 12 , wherein said setting means maintainsthe process mode unchanged until a packet containing a commandindicating the end of the mode has been received via the LAN or thecommunication line.
 15. A data processing apparatus according to claim12 , wherein said setting means defines a priority of said processmodes, and sets the process mode to a mode corresponding to a processcommand contained in a received packet wherein said process mode is setaccording to its defined priority.
 16. A data processing apparatusconnectable to a LAN, comprising: input means for inputting image data;detection means for detecting an error in said data processingapparatus; transfer means for transferring the image data received viasaid input means to another apparatus connected to the LAN in a casewhere said detection means has detected an error in said data processingapparatus; and storage means for storing information representing theother apparatus, to which the image data has been transferred, in thecase where the image data has been transferred to the other apparatusconnected to the LAN.
 17. A data processing apparatus according to claim16 , wherein said input means inputs image data received via the LAN orvia communication line.
 18. A data processing apparatus according toclaim 17 , wherein said detection means detects an error in image memoryof said data processing apparatus and/or an error in a printer of saiddata processing apparatus.
 19. A data processing apparatus connectableto a LAN, comprising: input means for inputting image data includingdestination information; and transfer means for transferring the imagedata that has been input via said input means, to another apparatusconnected to the LAN, wherein, if the destination of the image data thathas been input via said input means is another apparatus connected tothe LAN, said transfer means automatically transfers the image data tothe apparatus identified by the destination information.
 20. A method ofcontrolling a data processing apparatus connectable to a LAN,comprising: an input step of inputting image data; a detection step ofdetecting an error in the data processing apparatus; a transfer step oftransferring the image data, that has been input in said input step, toanother apparatus connected to the LAN in a case where an error in thedata processing apparatus has been detected in-said detection step; anda storage step of storing information indicating a transfer destinationin a case where the image data has been-transferred to another apparatusconnected to the LAN in said transfer step.
 21. A method of controllinga data processing apparatus connectable to a LAN, comprising: areceiving step of receiving image data; a transfer step of transferringthe image data received in said receiving step to another-apparatusconnected to the LAN; a detection step of detecting an error in the LANthat makes the transfer in said transfer step impossible; an output stepof outputting an indication of the error in the LAN detected in saiddetection step.
 22. A method of controlling a data processing apparatusconnectable to a LAN, comprising: an analysis step of analyzing aprocess command contained in a packet received via the LAN or acommunication line; and a setting step of setting a reading mode,communication mode, and output mode based on the process commandanalyzed in said analysis step, wherein, in said setting step, each modeis set in such a manner that: an original document or printed materialis read in the reading mode; data contained in a received packet istransmitted via the communication line or the LAN in the communicationmode; and data contained in a received packet is output in the outputmode.